[meboubou]

Hi, I'm a 23 year old female and I was just diagnosed with IBS last week. I can't say enough how freaked out I am... I'm been in pain for 3 weeks and it's getting worse. I'm currently living and studying in China which makes things even more stressful... I'm consulting with an English speaking doctor but I feel posting here might give me answers he can't give me. For those who have had IBS for some time now, does the pain ever go away? I've been having problems sleeping and I havn't been to class in 3 weeks. I can't sit up for more than 20 minutes without feeling like I've been stabbed. How do you manage the pain? Any ways I can manage for a few hours a day to at least attend classes? What foods should I keep away from? The doctor has put me on a strict diet for about a week now but I am a bit hoping I'll be able to eat something that has more taste than white rice really soon... And well.... what treatments are possible outside of Dicitel tablets? I only started those tablets 2 days ago but the pain seems to be increasing, not decreasing.. I will be seeing my doctor about this in 2 days but I'm wondering if there are other medical treatments or natural alternatives that work?

 

[lorilou]

so sorry youre in so much pain. i have had ibs for almost 30 yrs. for the past 7 yrs my constiption is under control and have had little to no pain. then this week it went wild. saw a dr. and then ended up in the ER thinking i had appendicitis. anyhow it does get better. stress will make it worse so try not to worry and focus on it. excersies when possible is good. also I am on bentyl and that really helps the pain. i think evveryone is different concerning food triggers. try to eat bland just for a while till you get over this flare. did they do a CT scan? what about blood work? where is your pain?prayers for youlori

 

[meboubou]

Well, I am in China so my foerign doc goes with the local equipement and trusted doctors, so I had bloodworks and a colonoscopy as well as urine test, stool test, tried different meds and the doc tried finding anything else from head to toes... he wasn't happy to diagnose me with IBS... Frankly, he really tried to find anything else.. which was kind of a stress when he said ''I would have rather found anything else but, you have IBS'' . Stress is def. an issue at the moment, I'm a month late in Uni, I havn't been to work in a month so no money coming in and if I don't get decent grades at the end of this semester I can say goodbye to any scholarships... Obvisously, it's not helping my condition but I can't seem to find a way to let the stress go. Pain is mainly on the upper left side, but tonight it was complete left side and upper right too... and I'm constipated... so it really sucks.. I'll try and get back to excerising and stick to bland foods I guess... I also read I should keep a food-feelings-weather diary... so I guess I'll get started... thanks for replying!

 

[lorilou]

I take milk of mag and also miralax- that keeps me going so I dont deal with the constipation anymore- that in itself is miserable- I tolerate pain better than that. can you get those meds in China?lori

 

[meboubou]

I can get practicly every med over the counter, the only issue with that is, I can never be sure whether what is on the box is IN the box... and frankly, I can never be sure if what I'm getting is quality... My currenct doctor had an international standard pharmacy but it's mainly for family medicin, common problems... I will definitively try and find it though. Thanks a lot.